JP6018054B2 - High performance heating device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a heating device having a thermoblock and a control unit. In particular, the heating device is arranged to be incorporated into a beverage preparation machine.

  For the purposes of this description, “beverage” is intended to include any liquid food such as tea, coffee, hot or cold chocolate, milk, soup, baby food, hot or cold water. A “capsule” can be of any shape and structure, including flexible pods or rigid cartridges containing raw materials, in any package of material, particularly in an airtight package, such as plastic, aluminum, recyclable, and It is intended to include any pre-divided beverage ingredients in a biodegradable package.

  Beverage preparation machines have been known for many years. For example, US Pat. No. 5,943,472 discloses a water distribution system between a hot water or steam distribution chamber of an espresso machine and a water reservoir. The distribution system includes a valve, a metal heating tube, and a pump that are connected to the reservoir and connected to each other via various silicon hoses that are coupled using a clamp collar.

  EP 1646305 discloses a beverage preparation machine having a heating device for heating the water which is subsequently fed to the inlet of the brewing unit. The brewing unit is adapted to send heated water to a capsule containing the beverage ingredients for brewing the beverage ingredients. The brewing unit has a chamber defined by a first part and a second part movable relative to the first part, and the first and second parts from an open configuration of the brewing unit to a closed configuration. And a guide for positioning the capsule in an intermediate position between the first and second parts before moving together.

  In-line heaters for heating circulating fluids, in particular water, are also well known and these in-line heaters are, for example, Swiss Patent Application Publication No. 593044, German Patent Application Publication No. 10322034, German Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 19711291, German Patent Application Publication No. 197332414, German Patent Application Publication No. 197376694, European Patent Application Publication No. 0485211, European Patent Application Publication No. 1380243 European Patent Application No. 1634520, French Patent Application No. 2799630, US Pat. No. 4,242,568, US Pat. No. 4,595,131, US Pat. US Pat. No. 4,700,052, US Pat. No. 5,019,690, US Pat. No. 5,392,6 4, US Pat. No. 5,943,472, US Pat. No. 6,246,831, US Pat. No. 6,393,967, US Pat. No. 6,889,598, US It is disclosed in Japanese Patent No. 7,286,752, the pamphlet of WO 01/54551, and the pamphlet of WO 2004/006742.

  One problem with heaters for heating water in beverage machines lies in the operating temperature that encourages scale build-up from the water in the heating device, i.e., normally close to the boiling point of water. In particular, in-line heaters having heating ducts or channels for rapidly heating the circulating water are exposed to such scale deposition that can eventually result in clogging of the in-line heater.

  This problem has particular relevance to thermoblocks that are widely used in beverage preparation machines.

  Solutions to this problem have been descaling procedures in which a descaling agent is circulated within the fluid circuit of the machine. However, such treatment may last for a significant period of time, for example 0.5 hours to several hours, and requires the attention of the user or maintenance personnel.

  A thermoblock is an in-line heater through which liquid is circulated for heating. These thermoblocks have a high heat capacity to store thermal energy and a high thermal conductivity to transfer the required amount of stored heat to the liquid flowing through the thermoblock whenever necessary. Comprising a heating chamber such as one or more ducts, in particular extending from a (mass) metal mass formed from aluminum, iron and / or other metals or alloys, in particular formed from steel . The thermoblock duct may not be a separate duct, but may be formed by a through passage formed, for example, during the casting step of the mass of the thermoblock, which is machined or otherwise formed in the body of the duct. If the mass of the thermoblock is made of aluminum, it is preferable for health reasons to provide a separate duct of steel, for example, to avoid contact between the fluid flow and the aluminum. The block mass may consist of one or more assembled parts around the duct. A thermoblock typically includes one or more resistive heating elements, such as separate or integral resistors, that convert electrical energy into heating energy. Such resistive heating elements are generally in or on the mass of the thermoblock at a distance of more than 1 mm from the duct, in particular a distance of more than 2-50 mm or 5-30 mm. Heat is supplied to the mass of the thermoblock, and is supplied to the flowing liquid through the mass. The heating element may be cast or contained in a metal mass, or may be fixed to the surface of the metal mass. One or more ducts may have a helical arrangement or other arrangement along the thermoblock to maximize its / their length and maximize heat transfer through the block.

  In order to act to heat the circulating water from room temperature to near the boiling point, for example, from 90 to 98 ° C., it is generally necessary to preheat the thermoblock for 1.5 to 2 minutes. In order to reduce the latency between two successive beverage preparation cycles, such a thermoblock is maintained at its operating temperature. However, such a process consumes a significant amount of energy in order to be ready at any time, especially when a series of beverages are required with a considerable time gap between them. With more environmentally friendly appliances and energy savings, the beverage preparation machine is automatically adapted as discussed, for example, in WO2009 / 092745 and EP-A-0 9168147.8. Includes a timer to stop the machine or enter standby mode.

  Instantaneous heaters have been developed and have been slightly commercialized in beverage preparation machines. Such heaters have very low thermal inertia and have high output resistance heaters such as thick film heaters. Examples of such systems are EP 0 485 211, DE 1973 24414, DE 103 220 34, DE 1 737 694. , WO 01/54551, WO 2004/006742, US Pat. No. 7,286,752, and WO 2007/039683.

  However, these instantaneous heaters are expensive and require high performance and precise control systems to avoid local hot spots. Such precise control of the heater output is difficult to achieve without conflicting with the flicker criteria.

  Accordingly, there remains a need to provide a simple, environmentally friendly, inexpensive and reliable heating system in a machine for preparing hot beverages such as tea or coffee.

  A preferred object of the present invention is to provide a convenient heater and control system for a beverage preparation machine that alleviates at least some of the aforementioned problems.

  The present invention therefore relates to a beverage preparation machine. Such machines have a heat storage structure, such as a heater for heating the supply liquid from the supply temperature to the beverage preparation temperature, in particular an in-line heater and / or a thermoblock, and for heating the supply liquid to the beverage preparation temperature during beverage preparation. And a control unit for controlling the liquid supply and the heater so that the heater is powered to reach and maintain the operating temperature.

  “Beverage preparation” is generally automated by a beverage preparation machine, typically to fulfill a beverage request made by a user, for example, to dispense a required amount of beverage to fill a user cup or user mug to a desired level. It is a series of steps executed automatically. Such a step in particular processes, for example, a user-requested amount of beverage corresponding to a full cup or mug and places the beverage via the beverage outlet into the area for placing the user cup and / or user mug. Includes pouring. Processing a predetermined amount of beverage involves heating a predetermined amount of liquid such as water, for example a carrier liquid, and other ingredients such as liquid and flavor ingredients (e.g. chocolate, soup, water-soluble coffee, water-soluble tea, or And / or decocting raw materials with liquids with or without the aid of pressure, particularly requiring the use of a pump (eg, ground coffee or tea leaves). Good. “Beverage preparation” generally ends when the amount of beverage requested by the user at a given point in time has been processed and dispensed to the user. Such termination of processing and / or dispensing corresponds to the termination of the flow of liquid through the beverage preparation machine or the termination of the dispensing of beverage via a beverage preparation machine, for example a beverage outlet. Also good. In particular, “beverage preparation” refers to “beverage preparation” in order to take into account machine routines at the end of distribution, especially beverage-related tests, or safety or ergonomic processes (eg scale tests or hygiene tests) or other reasons. It may extend by several seconds or tens of seconds beyond the actual distribution and dispensing of beverages, so that the end of “preparation” is slightly delayed relative to the completion of beverage distribution and / or dispensing according to beverage user requirements. .

  The machine may have a fluid circuit for flowing liquid, eg water, from a liquid source such as a liquid reservoir or faucet to the beverage outlet. The heater is generally in fluid connection with a fluid circuit. A pump may be incorporated into the fluid circuit to facilitate the flow of liquid through the fluid circuit. Such a pump may be controlled by a control unit.

  In general, the machine is configured to prepare coffee, tea, chocolate or soup. In particular, the machine may prepare the beverage in the beverage module by passing hot or cold water or other liquid through the flavor raw material in the beverage module, for example the flavor raw material held in the mixing and / or brewing unit. can do. For example, the flavor raw material is supplied to the module in a capsule. Such capsules generally form a package that defines an internal cavity for containing the ingredients of the beverage to be prepared, such as ground coffee or tea or chocolate or cacao or powdered milk. Thus, the raw materials used for beverage preparation can be introduced into the machine in a pre-divided form using capsules, ie packages for holding and containing the raw materials.

  In accordance with the present invention, the control unit causes the heater to be powered outside the range of beverage preparation to reach and maintain a reduced temperature.

  Thus, when the heater is not used for beverage preparation, the heater can be cooled to a reduced temperature. The heater can be used immediately after the beverage preparation is complete, for example, when the heater has supplied the required amount of heated liquid to prepare the beverage, or the beverage preparation machine can dispense the required amount of beverage into a cup or mug, for example. It may be possible to cool to this reduced temperature at the point of supply or immediately after, for example after a few seconds or tens of seconds, for example after 1 or 2 minutes. In particular, when the brewing step is performed, the beverage dispensing may be ended after the end of distribution.

  In a particularly simple embodiment of the present invention, when the beverage preparation machine uses pre-divided beverage ingredients that are supplied to the capsule, the “beverage preparation” described above is where the liquid is actually distributed or the beverage is actually poured. Presence in the machine of such capsules in the disposal state for dispensing beverages using this capsule, for example raw material capsules placed in the brewing unit of the beverage machine, whether or not to be dispensed May be considered equivalent. In this case, it is sufficient to monitor the presence or absence of the dispensed capsule in the machine. It is also possible to do this automatically.

  At the end of the beverage preparation, the heater is powered to maintain the heater at a reduced temperature. The temperature drop between the operating temperature and the reduced temperature may be achieved by shutting off the heater power supply via the control unit. Thereafter, the heater may be powered at an appropriate level to maintain the heater at a reduced temperature. For further beverage preparation, the heater is first brought from the reduced temperature to the operating temperature.

  This considerably reduces the energy consumption of the heater between two successive beverage preparations compared to a system that keeps the heater continuously at operating temperature for an extended period of time. Also, the heating time for the heater to reach its operating temperature from the reduced temperature is also shorter than the heating time required to heat the heater that can be cooled by being completely interrupted. Also, if the heater has an operating temperature close to the boiling point of the liquid, for example water, the scale build-up in the heater can already be significantly reduced by reducing the heater temperature by a few degrees.

  For example, the operating temperature of the heater is in the range of 65-98 ° C, in particular in the range of 85-95 ° C. When preparing coffee, such as espresso, the temperature of the beverage supplied can be in the range of 80-90 ° C. For example, in order to take into account the temperature loss downstream of the heater during decoction, the heater may have to heat the circulating water to 85-95 ° C. or higher. Tea may be best at a temperature of 60-95 ° C. Similarly, the heater may have to heat the circulating water from 65 to 98 ° C., for example to account for temperature loss across the downstream side of the heater during brewing.

  Usually, the decrease temperature is lower than the operating temperature, for example, as described above, and higher than the non-operating temperature of the heater, for example, higher than the ambient temperature within the range of 10 to 30 ° C.

  The reduced temperature may be in the range of 50-95% of the operating temperature relative to the non-operating temperature, for example in the range of 60-90%, optionally 70-85%. For example, if the non-operating temperature is 20 ° C. (ambient temperature) and the operating temperature is 90 ° C., the temperature range between them is 70 ° C., thus 50-95% of the temperature range is 35-66. Corresponds to a temperature difference of .5 ° C., so the corresponding reduced temperature (50-95% of the operating temperature of 90 ° C. relative to the non-operating temperature of 20 ° C.) is in the range of 20 + 35 ° C.-20 + 66.5 ° C. It is in the range of 55 ° C to 86.5 ° C.

  The decreasing temperature may be 3 to 50 ° C. lower than the operating temperature, and particularly 5 to 35 ° C. lower than the operating temperature.

  In one embodiment, the reduced temperature is at a level that substantially prevents scale build-up in the heater. The decreasing temperature may be less than 90 ° C., in particular in the range from 80 ° C. to 89 ° C., for example in the range from 84 to 88 ° C.

  Scale deposition in the water circuit occurs mainly when water turns into steam. At this point, minerals present in the water precipitate in the circuit. For example, to prepare an optimal coffee, depending on the environment (atmospheric pressure), the water may be heated to about 95 ° C., which is very close to the boiling point of water at 100 ° C.

  By reducing the temperature of the heater by several degrees, for example, by setting the temperature to about 85 to 90 ° C., boiling of water is substantially prevented, and scale deposition is effectively suppressed. For example, with a prior art beverage machine using a thermoblock of about 1 to 1.5 kW, a temperature decrease from 94 to 88 ° C., for example, at the end of beverage preparation, about 1 minute after the thermoblock is shut off. May be required.

  For example, the decreasing temperature is less than 90 ° C, in particular less than 85 ° C. If the operating temperature is close to the boiling temperature, for example about 90-99 ° C., even a few degrees of heater temperature reduction, especially in heaters with non-uniform heat distribution within their heating cavities, Reduce the risk considerably. Inhomogeneous heat distribution can result in “hot spots” where the risk of scale deposition is high. Thus, by reducing the overall heater temperature by at least 2-3 degrees, any scale build-up is reduced or suppressed or even prevented to a significant degree during periods when the beverage is not being prepared.

  In other embodiments, the control unit includes a service mode that is enabled when a reduced temperature is reached. The reduced temperature can be in the range of 55-75 ° C, especially when the operating temperature is in the range of 80-98 ° C. Washing and / or descaling may be performed at a temperature in the range of 50-65 or 70 ° C. The reduced temperature can be set to the temperature required for cleaning and / or descaling, for example 50-65 or 70 ° C, or set between such temperature and the operating temperature, Heating of the heater from the reduced temperature to the operating temperature may be reduced. In the latter case, if servicing is required and / or required, the heater may be allowed to cool from a reduced temperature of, for example, 65-80 ° C. to a servicing temperature of, for example, 50-65 or 70 ° C.

  Descaling and / or cleaning may generally involve circulating an amount of cleaning liquid and / or descaling liquid in the range of 250-1000 ml, for example 400-750 ml, for example using a machine pump. The liquid may be continuously circulated or may involve some blockage of flow.

  Descaling may be performed at higher temperatures, temperatures above 70-75 ° C. However, some scale removers tend to evaporate at higher temperatures, which can generate toxic gases.

  The rinsing of the machine's liquid circuit, in particular the heater, is preferably carried out at a reduced temperature, so that on the one hand less energy is required in the heating of the rinsing liquid, on the other hand the rinsing liquid is especially heated. The possibility of depositing scale at low. The rinsing may be accompanied by a pulsed flow of rinsing liquid.

  The reduced temperature level may be set at the time of shipment and / or may be selectable or changeable by the user, i.e., the consumer and / or maintenance personnel. In particular, the machine may include a device, such as a user interface, that allows the user to set the reduced temperature within a temperature range of 45-90 ° C, such as 55-85 ° C, optionally 60-80 ° C. The user interface for setting the reduced temperature level in a given temperature range provides an indication of the time required to save energy at the selected reduced temperature and / or bring the heater from the selected reduced temperature to the operating temperature. It may be associated with means for giving to the user. The means may be a numerical or symbolic display adjacent to the interface or other location so that the user can consider the environmental benefits and assumptions associated with heating the heater from a reduced temperature to an operating temperature. The inconvenience to be obtained can be predicted and examined. Thus, the ergonomic use, environmental awareness, and willingness to take advantage of the possibilities offered in connection with reduced temperatures are improved.

  It is also conceivable to allow the user to terminate the function of the heater to be driven at a reduced temperature when the machine is switched on but not preparing a beverage.

  Generally speaking, “beverage preparation” may be initiated by a user request and / or finished beverage preparation via an appropriate interface such as, for example, a switch, button, touchpad, or touch screen. Sometimes it may be terminated when the supply of liquid to the heater is stopped or when the dispensing of the beverage is terminated.

  The start and end of “beverage preparation” may be associated with specific forms and / or features of the beverage preparation machine.

  The machine may comprise an apparatus for mixing and / or brewing one or more beverage ingredients. In particular, the mixing and / or brewing device may have a form for taking in and / or removing raw materials and a form for mixing and / or brewing such raw materials. Such devices are well known in the art. Suitable mixing and / or brewing devices are, for example, European Patent Application Publication No. 1646305, European Patent Application Publication No. 1859713, European Patent Application Publication No. 1859714, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. No. WO2009 / 043630 and European Patent Application No. 091722187.8.

  The control unit is selected from: the mixing and / or brewing device is in a take-up form; the raw material is taken into the mixing and / or brewing device; and the raw material is detected in the mixing and / or brewing device The heater may be powered to reach and maintain an operating temperature when at least one event occurs.

  Setting a specific form, preferably automatically detected, of the mixing and / or brewing unit that indicates the need just before heating the liquid to dispense the beverage as the starting point for the beverage preparation, Helps save time to reach.

  Automatic detection of raw materials and / or capsules of raw materials in a mixing and / or brewing device may be used as a starting point for beverage preparation using such raw materials. As a result, the control unit does not wait until the user operates a beverage dispensing interface, e.g., a button, for dispensing the small or large cup in the beverage preparation machine to bring the heater to its operating temperature.

  Similarly, the control unit may be configured such that the mixing and / or brewing device is in a take-off form; the raw material is removed from the mixing and / or brewing device; and especially when the device is in a mixing and / or brewing form. The absence of raw materials is detected in the mixing and / or brewing device (eg, the mixing and / or brewing device is empty); the heater reaches a reduced temperature upon occurrence of at least one event selected from: Power can be supplied to be maintained.

  In certain embodiments, the mixing and / or brewing device can be configured to incorporate capsules containing such ingredients, for example flavored ingredients such as ground coffee, tea, chocolate, soup, milk, etc. . In particular, the control unit may comprise a sensor for automatically detecting capsules in the mixing and / or brewing device. Such sensors are based on optics, radio as known in the art. For example, the capsule sensor is adapted to detect the electrical properties of the capsule, for example as disclosed in EP-A-101674633.8, the content of which is incorporated herein by reference.

  Automatic detection of raw materials and / or capsules of raw materials in a mixing and / or brewing device may be used as a starting point for beverage preparation using such raw materials. As a result, the control unit does not wait until the user operates a beverage dispensing interface, e.g., a button, for dispensing the small or large cup in the beverage preparation machine to bring the heater to its operating temperature.

  In one embodiment, automatic detection of raw materials and / or capsules in the mixing and / or brewing device is used to bring the heater to operating temperature. The lack of detection of raw materials and / or capsules in the mixing and / or brewing device can be used as a time point to bring the heater to its reduced temperature. The end of liquid flow upon such detection of raw materials and / or capsules may be used as a time point for the heater to reach its reduced temperature.

  In other embodiments, the automatic detection of raw materials and / or capsules in the mixing and / or brewing device, and the mixing and / or brewing device in the take-up form to keep the heaters at operating temperature. Used for. In that case, the lack of detection of raw materials and / or capsules in the mixing and / or brewing device in the mixing and / or brewing form is used as a time point to bring the heater to its reduced temperature.

  The control unit may also be adapted to automatically interrupt the heater power supply to reach a steady non-operating temperature, for example ambient temperature, when the interrupt condition and / or the standby condition are met. In addition to interrupting the heater power supply, other components of the beverage machine, such as pumps or active sensors, or other energy consuming components, such as the interface power supply, may be interrupted.

The invention also relates to a method of converting a prior art beverage preparation machine into the machine described above. Prior art machines are
A heat storage structure such as a heater for heating the supply liquid from the supply temperature to the beverage preparation temperature, in particular an in-line heater and / or a thermoblock;
A control unit for controlling such liquid supply and heater such that the heater is powered to reach and maintain operating temperature to heat such supply liquid to beverage preparation temperature during beverage preparation; ,
Is provided.

  According to the invention, the control unit is modified, in particular reprogrammed, so that, during use, the heater is powered to maintain a reduced temperature and maintained outside the range of beverage preparation.

  Thus, the present invention can be implemented in an existing beverage preparation machine with minimal cost and can be implemented in a new built machine with little additional cost.

  The present invention will now be described with reference to the schematic drawings.

1 shows a heating device comprising a thermoblock and a control unit for a beverage preparation machine according to the invention. The fluid distribution in the similar thermoblock is shown. Figure 2 shows a comparative temperature profile over time of the heaters of the beverage preparation machine of the present invention and the prior art beverage preparation machine. Figure 2 shows a comparative temperature profile over time of the heaters of the beverage preparation machine of the present invention and the prior art beverage preparation machine.

  FIG. 1 shows an exploded view of a heating device of a beverage preparation machine according to the present invention in which the liquid is brewed from the beverage ingredients supplied into the brewing chamber after being circulated through the thermoblock. To be guided into the brewing chamber. An example of such a beverage machine is disclosed in WO 2009/13099, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

  For example, the beverage ingredients are supplied to the machine in capsule form. In general, this type of beverage machine is suitable for preparing coffee, tea, and / or other hot beverages, or even for preparing soups and similar foods. The pressure of the liquid flowing into the brewing chamber may, for example, reach about 2 to 25 bar, in particular 5 to 20 bar, for example 10 to 15 bar.

  For example, a machine has a beverage preparation module adapted to add a flavor to a liquid to form a beverage by flowing the liquid from a liquid source through flavor ingredients. The beverage preparation module may be adapted to pour the prepared beverage into the user cup or user mug via the beverage outlet.

A beverage preparation module generally has the following components:
a) A raw material holder, for example a brewing unit, for receiving the flavor raw material of this beverage, in particular a pre-divided raw material supplied in a capsule, and for guiding an incoming liquid, for example water, through this raw material to the beverage outlet Mixing and / or brewing structures;
b) An in-line heater such as a thermoblock or other regenerative heater for heating this liquid stream to be supplied to the raw material holder;
c) a pump for pumping liquid through an in-line heater;
d) one or more fluid connection members for guiding liquid from a liquid source, such as a liquid tank, to the beverage outlet;
e) an electrical control unit comprising in particular a printed circuit board (PCB) for receiving instructions from the user via the interface to control the inline heater and pump;
f) Selection from mixing and / or brewing characteristics, inline heater characteristics, pump characteristics, liquid reservoir characteristics, raw material collector characteristics, liquid flow characteristics, liquid pressure characteristics, and liquid temperature characteristics One or more electrical sensors for detecting at least one operating characteristic to be communicated and communicating such characteristic to the control unit;
One or more of the above.

  Examples of suitable brewing units and capsule management are disclosed in WO 2005/004683, WO 2007/135136, and WO 2009/043630, which are incorporated herein by reference. Is done. Suitable beverage preparation modules are disclosed, for example, in WO 2009/074550 and WO 2009/13099, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

  The heating device shown in FIG. 1 includes a thermoblock with an aluminum metal mass 1 and a thermally and electrically insulating plastic housing 3 that houses a printed circuit board 4 having, for example, one or more controllers, memory devices, etc. And a control unit 2.

  The metal mass 1 extends between the water injection port, the drainage port, and a free flow path (not shown) for guiding water flowing through the metal mass 1 from a water reservoir by a pump (not shown). Incorporating a water heating duct.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the mass 1 of the thermoblock may include a heating duct 12. The heating duct 12 has an inlet 12 'and an outlet 12 "'.

  The heating duct 12 may extend spirally through the mass 1 and particularly along a substantially horizontal axis. The duct 12 may have an upward flow part and a subsequent downward flow part. Such upward flow and downward flow of the duct 12 facilitates an increase in the speed of water along them, and pushes bubbles into the downward flow by the increasing flow of water so that the upward flow is reduced. In order to suppress the accumulation of bubbles, it may have a narrow cross section. In this configuration, the duct is adapted to change its cross-sectional size along the chamber in order to increase the flow rate in an area that could otherwise lead to trapping of bubbles, especially vapor bubbles, usually in the upper area. . The increased liquid velocity in these areas “washes” all possible bubbles out of these areas due to the high velocity liquid flow in these areas. In order to avoid overheating in such areas with a reduction in cross section, the heating power may be reduced in the corresponding parts of the heater, for example by adjusting the resistance means of these parts. In a variation, the duct has a reduced cross-section along the entire length of the duct to provide a sufficient water flow rate to wash out possible vapor bubbles formed in the duct during heating. Because the heat transfer is more evenly distributed and affects the flow to prevent local overheating and associated bubble formation, the heating duct 12 may be provided with different cross sections.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the metal mass 1 of the thermoblock forms or firmly fixes the upstream portion of the brewing chamber (not shown) such that the hard passage of the metal mass 1 extends into the brewing chamber. It further includes an opening 1b. The beverage preparation machine also includes a downstream portion (not shown) having a beverage outlet and cooperating with the upstream portion to form a brewing chamber, the downstream portion and the upstream portion being configured to supply raw materials into the brewing chamber and It can be arranged to be spaced and approached for the discharge of raw materials from the brewing chamber.

  In general, the upstream part of the brewing chamber incorporated in the thermoblock is fixed to the beverage preparation machine and the downstream part of the brewing chamber can be moved, or vice versa. The brewing chamber may have a generally horizontal orientation, i.e. form and direction such that water flows through the brewing chamber along a substantially horizontal direction, and the upstream and / or downstream portions are It may be movable in the same direction as the water flow in the chamber or in the opposite direction. Embodiments of such thermoblocks and brewing chambers are disclosed, for example, in WO 2009/043630, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

  The control unit 2 is fixed to the metal mass 1 via a snap 3a of the housing 3 that cooperates with a corresponding recess 1a on the surface of the metal mass 1 when the housing 3 is assembled to the metal mass 1 in the direction of the arrow 3 '. The

  A two-part housing 3 of the control unit 2 surrounds the printed circuit board (PCB) in a particularly substantially impervious manner on all sides in order to protect the PCB from liquids and vapors in the machine. The two parts of the housing 3 may be assembled by screws 3b or by any other suitable assembly means such as rivets, gluing, welding, etc. The control unit 2 includes a user interface having a master switch 2a and two control switches 2b connected to the PCB via the housing 3. Of course, more sophisticated user interfaces including screens or touch screens can be used. The PCB includes a power connector for supplying heating power to the metal mass 1 via power pins 11 extending through corresponding openings in the housing 3 and, if necessary, a user interface, pump, fan, valve, sensor A further electrical connector for one or more further electrical equipment of a beverage preparation machine, and a connector to a power outlet for a central power source.

  The thermoblock receives a power switch in the form of an electrical component, ie a temperature sensor 70 connected to the PCB, a thermal fuse 75, a triac 60, the opening of the cavity having a protruding wall 102, a metal mass 1 And a heating register (not shown) having a connector pin 11 firmly fixed to the PCB and firmly connected to the PCB. Also, the PCB is generally between a pump and a water source such as a water reservoir or liquid reservoir or other liquid source, or between the pump and a heating device or heated via a rigid connector or cable 91. It is electrically connected to the hall sensor 90 of the flow meter which is arranged in the water circuit of the beverage preparation machine in the apparatus.

  The PCB also controls the intensity of the current passed through the resistance heating element based on the flow rate of the circulating water measured using the flow meter and the temperature of the heated water measured using the temperature sensor 70. And a microcontroller or processor and possibly a quartz watch. The sensor 70 may be disposed in the thermoblock at a distance from the circulating water in order to perform indirect measurement of the water temperature. To increase the accuracy of temperature control, one or more temperature sensors may be incorporated into the metal mass 1 and / or the brewing chamber and / or upstream of the metal mass 1 or into the water inlet of the metal mass. The controller or processor is a liquid, such as a pump, water supply reservoir level detector, valve, user interface, power management device, automatic beverage ingredient feeder such as an integrated coffee grinder, or ingredient capsule or pod automatic feeder Further functions of the food preparation machine or the beverage preparation machine may be controlled.

  Further details of the heating device and the incorporation of the heating device into the beverage preparation machine can be found in, for example, WO 2009/043630, WO 2009/043851, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference, It is disclosed in International Publication No. 2009/043865 pamphlet and International Publication No. 2009/130099 pamphlet.

  Here, the present invention will be described with emphasis on temperature control of the heater 1 via the control unit 2.

  The heater 1 is configured to heat, for example, the supply liquid flowing along the heating duct 12 from the supply temperature to the beverage preparation temperature.

  The control unit 2 controls this liquid supply, for example via a pump, in order to heat the supply liquid to the beverage preparation temperature during beverage preparation, and is supplied with power so that the heater 1 reaches the operating temperature and is maintained. The heater 1 is controlled.

  According to the present invention, the control unit 2 further causes the heater 1 to be powered outside the range of beverage preparation so that the heater 1 reaches a reduced temperature and is maintained.

  3 and 4 show the two temperature profiles B1, B2 of the heater 1 over time when the heater 1 is controlled by the control unit 2 according to the invention (in broken lines). In contrast, the temperature profiles A1, A2 (solid lines) correspond to the temperature of the heater of the prior art beverage preparation machine.

  These temperature levels are shown in FIGS.

  Level “0” represents the steady state temperature of the heater 1 when disconnected or not powered or in standby mode. In this case, the heater 1 is usually at ambient temperature or room temperature, for example, 5 to 45 ° C., and is generally in the range of 15 to 30 ° C.

  The level “RUN” represents the operating temperature of the heater 1 during beverage preparation. In order to bring the liquid in the heater to an appropriate temperature for pouring out the beverage, for example, about 85 to 88 ° C. when pouring coffee, or 60 to 95 ° C. when pouring tea. In order to achieve this, power is controlled by the control unit 2 and controlled. The temperature of the liquid supplied by the heater is generally several degrees higher than the temperature of the beverage to be dispensed, for example 85-88 ° C. when dispensing coffee, for example to serve coffee. In the case of water, it can be 89-92 ° C. Therefore, in the control of the heater, the temperature loss of the liquid flowing between the heater and the user cup or user mug from which the liquid is poured is taken into account.

  The level “ECO” represents the reduced temperature of the heater 1 when it is out of beverage preparation, ie when the beverage is not prepared. This temperature level is between level “0” and level “RUN”.

  The decreasing temperature of the level “ECO” is lower than the operating temperature (level “RUN”), higher than the heater non-operating temperature (level “0”), for example, higher than the ambient temperature. As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the reduced temperature can range from 50 to 95%, such as about 70 to 75%. For example, the reduced temperature can be about 10-20 ° C. lower than the operating temperature, eg, 90 or 95 ° C.

  The temperature of the heater (level “RUN”) for supplying the liquid at the desired temperature may be lower or higher than the change in the flow rate of the liquid or the initial temperature of the liquid flow structure upstream of the heater. There may be slight changes during beverage preparation to accommodate variations in the thermal equilibrium upstream of the heater due to the passage of liquid.

  FIG. 3 shows the temperature over time of the thermoblock 1 with a power capacity of, for example, 1.2 kW, which is controlled by the control unit 1 applying the prior art thermal conditioning system. In general, this regulation system is a thermal loop regulation. In the case of a coffee machine, the conditioning system is adapted to bring about 20-100 ml of water, for example from a room temperature of 15-25 ° C. to a temperature of about 90-94 ° C., in order to brew coffee ground in the brewing unit. Yes.

  The preheating period of the heater from room temperature to the operating temperature is generally from 1.5 to, for example, with a slow final adjustment phase as shown at the end of the preheating curves A11, B11 until the beverage start “ST”. Lasts 2 minutes. At the end of the preheating curves A11, B11, the beverage preparation can be started, the beverage preparation being dependent on the amount of beverage requested by the user, the beverage preparation duration between times “ST” and “END” Over. During this time, the heater is maintained at an operating temperature “RUN” that can be substantially stabilized over time as indicated by curves A12, B12.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the beverage preparation begins immediately after the end of preheating. For example, a request to prepare a beverage is made to the machine before the end of preheating and is stored by the machine and then automatically executed by the machine at the end of preheating to reach the temperature level “RUN”. Such a system is generally described in European Patent Application No. 09168147.8, the contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference.

  When the time “END” is reached, the beverage preparation is terminated. At this point, the prior art heater is maintained at a temperature level, typically the temperature level “RUN”, for delivering the beverage immediately, as indicated by curve A13. On the other hand, the heater 1 controlled by the controller 2 can be cooled to the temperature “ECO” by stopping the power supply of the heater 1, for example, and then the heater 1 can be cooled by the temperature curve B <b> 13 by appropriate power supply. As shown, the temperature “ECO” is maintained between the temperature “0” and the temperature “RUN”.

  After a certain period, which may be determined by a period of non-use of the machine as measured by a timer activated at the end of the beverage preparation “END”, the heater may enter standby mode or auto-interrupt mode and the temperature curve A14 , B14 can be cooled to a temperature level “0”.

  FIG. 4 shows another comparative temperature profile between a heating system according to the present invention and a prior art heating system. The temperature over time of the heating system according to the invention is shown by curve B2. The gradual change in temperature of the prior art is shown by curve A2. The heating system according to the present invention and the prior art heating system are similar to the heating system associated with FIG.

  The time scale in FIG. 4 is compressed compared to the time scale in FIG.

  Unlike the profile shown in FIG. 3, the preparation of the beverage does not begin immediately after the end of the start-up period. The temperature curves A21 and B21 at the time of start rise immediately from the level “0” when the heater is powered.

  In the case of the prior art heating system, the heater is brought directly to the operating temperature level “RUN” and the beverage is required at some point “ST” when the heater temperature is maintained at the same level as shown by curve A22. This level A211 remains until this time.

  On the other hand, the heater of the heating system according to the invention is brought from the level “0” to the reduced temperature level “ECO” (as indicated by the curve B21), and as indicated by the curve B211 until the beverage is required. Maintained at a lower temperature level. When a beverage is required, the heater of the system of the present invention is brought from the reduced temperature “ECO” to an operating temperature level “RUN” for preparing the beverage represented by curve B22.

  Thereafter, the heater system of the present invention and the prior art behave similarly to the case shown in FIG. Certainly, after the beverage preparation is completed at time “END”, the prior art heating system is shown by curve A23 until the standby or interrupt process is started at time “OFF” (curve A24) when the heater power is cut off. Maintained at operating temperature as shown. After the beverage preparation, the heating system of the present invention has a temperature that is allowed to drop immediately to a reduced temperature level “ECO”, as indicated by curve B23 until a standby or interrupt process is initiated (curve B24). Maintained at this level.

  Suitable standby / interruption systems are disclosed, for example, in WO 2009/092745 and European Patent Application Publication No. 09168147.8, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

  Thus, in the illustrative, non-limiting example shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the prior art heating system is maintained at the operating temperature “RUN” for an extended period of time, even when no beverage preparation is performed by the machine. While maintained, the heating system of the present invention is brought to the operating temperature “RUN” only during the time required to prepare the beverage and is maintained at the reduced temperature “ECO” when the beverage is not prepared.

  The reduced temperature can help to suppress scale buildup at the heater. In this case, it is not necessary to increase the temperature decrease, for example, 10 to 20 ° C. lower than the boiling point of the liquid heated by the heater, and 2 to 5 or 10 ° C. lower than the operating temperature of the heater of the coffee machine. It may be low. While this can effectively prevent scale buildup, the time required to reach operating temperature from the reduced temperature can be very short, for example 2-5 or 8 seconds using prior art temperature regulation systems. Gives the advantage that it can be.

  If the difference between the operating temperature and the decreasing temperature is small, for example less than 5 ° C. or less than 10 ° C., the time from the decreasing temperature to the operating temperature can be shortened sufficiently, for example less than 3 seconds or less than 5 seconds So that the process can be hidden from the user. For example, the machine may be adapted to detect an impending beverage dispense and bring the heater to operating temperature without waiting for a beverage preparation request. Such an event can be particularly the introduction of raw materials subdivided and / or contained in a capsule into a beverage machine and / or user operation of a part of the machine, such as a brewing unit, for example of machine blockage. It may be an event that normally precedes a beverage preparation request by the user, such as opening.

  For example, when the heater is controlled to be maintained at a reduced temperature, the control unit may monitor the introduction of beverage ingredients and / or user operation of a ingredients chamber such as a brewing unit. As soon as the control unit detects the introduction of the beverage ingredients and / or the user operation of the ingredients chamber, the control unit is adapted to bring the heater from the reduced temperature to the operating temperature without waiting for a user request for beverage preparation. Also good. If the time to bring the heater from the reduced temperature to the operating temperature is short enough, the heater can reach the operating temperature by the time the user requests a beverage. If the user notices that the time required to reach the operating temperature is too long, the user's waiting time is at least reduced.

  The reduced temperature can further help to significantly reduce energy consumption between successive beverage preparations. In this case, the temperature may be able to be lowered over a greater degree, for example by 15-30 ° C. In this case, if the time interval between two successive beverage preparations is long enough for the heater temperature to drop to a predetermined reduced temperature, of course, the time required to reach the operating temperature is increased. However, if successive beverage preparations are performed at narrow time intervals, the heater does not have time to reach a reduced temperature level, thus limiting the time required to raise the heater to operating temperature. The

  The present invention is achieved by reprogramming the control unit of an existing coffee machine, in particular the Citiz® class Nespresso® coffee machine that has been commercialized and is generally described in WO 2009/074550. Can be implemented. By giving such a reduced temperature level to the machine, the following energy savings can be achieved compared to the consumption before improvement of such a machine.

  These illustrations correspond to a Citiz® coffee machine with a 1.2 kW thermoblock heater with 330 g of aluminum heat storage mass. The control unit is adapted to bring the heater to an operating temperature of 94 ° C. in order to supply coffee having a post-brewing temperature of about 86-88 ° C. The machine can be inspected at an ambient temperature of 20 ° C. (room temperature). This provides a temperature range of 74 ° C. between ambient and operating temperatures. The machine pump provides a free flow of 300 ml / min through the thermoblock, i.e. no coffee capsules in the machine's brewing unit.

  The reduced temperature level of the machine can be set to 70 ° C. This corresponds to a temperature range of 50 ° C. relative to the ambient temperature (20 ° C.) and to a temperature range of 24 ° C. relative to the operating temperature, ie 30% below the operating temperature of 94 ° C. relative to the ambient temperature. .

  A machine with the heater and controller of the present invention requires about 15 minutes to reach a reduced temperature of 70 ° C. from 94 ° C., ie by disconnecting the heater. During this period, the prior art machine maintains its heater at 94 ° C. and therefore requires 1.91 Wh. However, prior art machines are ready to heat water at any time to prepare a beverage, whereas the present machine must first bring the heater from a reduced temperature to an operating temperature. . This latter operation requires 20-30 seconds of preheating. Since the reduced temperature is maintained at 70 ° C., the same duration is required for long periods of inactivity. However, if the time between two beverage preparations is less than 15 minutes, there is no time for the heater temperature to drop to 70 ° C. and correspondingly, the time for reheating to the operating temperature is even shorter. For example, in a non-operation period of 5 minutes, the reheating time is 6 to 10 seconds.

  The time required to bring the heater of the prior art machine and the machine of the present invention from ambient temperature to 94 ° C. is in each case about 1.5 minutes.

  The time delay can be significantly shortened by optimizing the heating algorithm and by reducing the heater mass. In particular, the prior art heating algorithm may be enhanced using a prediction system or even a self-learning system as disclosed, for example, in EP-A-10166366.4. In this case, the time delay is reduced by 2 to 4 times.

  When the machine is switched on and has not prepared any beverage over the course of 1 hour, the prior art heater and control unit, ie the prior art heating device, results in an additional consumption of 2.3 Wh. That is, the total consumption in the prior art heating device is 7.65 Wh, and the total consumption in the heating device of the present invention is 5.35 Wh, which is about 30% energy savings due to the implementation of the present invention. It corresponds to.

  When a rinsing cycle with a water volume of 240 ml is performed, the prior art heating device heats the water to 94 ° C. via the heater, thereby using 20.1 Wh. In contrast, the heating device of the present invention heats water to 70 ° C., thereby requiring 14.1 Wh. Thus, in this case as well, 30% energy savings can be achieved by using the heating device of the present invention instead of the prior art heating device.

  When coffee is prepared over a period of 30 minutes, the prior art heating device and the heating device of the present invention require the same amount of energy to heat the water. However, when the beverage is not being prepared, the prior art heating device requires significantly more energy than the heating device of the present invention. That is, the prior art heating device remains permanently ready to prepare the beverage, while the heating device of the present invention is 3.1 Wh, ie, the energy required by the prior art heating device. Enables energy savings of 23%.

Claims (13)

A heater (1 ) for heating the supply liquid from the supply temperature to the beverage preparation temperature;
A control unit (2) for controlling the supply of liquid and the heater so that the heater is powered to be maintained at an operating temperature in order to heat the supply liquid to the beverage preparation temperature during beverage preparation When,
In a beverage preparation machine comprising a淹出equipment for mixing device and / or淹出for mixing one or more beverage raw materials,
The control unit is powered so that the heater reaches a reduced temperature and is maintained outside the range of beverage preparation;
The control unit (2)
An event in which the mixing device and / or the brewing device are in a take-up configuration;
An event in which raw materials are incorporated into the mixing device and / or the brewing device; and
User request for beverage preparation to cause the heater to reach and maintain the operating temperature upon occurrence of at least one event selected from events in which raw materials are detected in the mixing device and / or the brewing device The beverage preparation machine is characterized in that the heater is supplied with power prior to the beverage preparation. The operating temperature is in the range of 65 to 98 ° C., the beverage preparation machine according to claim 1. The beverage preparation machine according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the reduced temperature is lower than the operating temperature and higher than a non-operating temperature of the heater. The beverage preparation machine according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the decrease temperature is 3 to 50 ° C lower than the operating temperature. The reduction temperature is the certain level to substantially prevent scale deposition in the heater (1), the beverage preparation machine according to any one of claims 1-4. The reduction temperature is in the level of the integer備用, wherein the control unit (2) is adapted to permit maintenance when reaching said decreased temperature, according to any one of claims 1 to 5 Beverage preparation machine. Reduced low temperature level is possible and / or can be changed selectively by Yu chromatography The beverage preparation machine according to any one of claims 1 to 6.   A user interface for setting the reduced temperature level within a predetermined temperature range, and energy savings at the selected reduced temperature and / or the time required to bring the heater from the selected reduced temperature to the operating temperature. A beverage preparation machine according to any one of the preceding claims, comprising means for giving a display to a user. Beverage preparation,
Initiated by a user request and / or
The beverage preparation machine according to any one of claims 1 to 8, which is terminated when supply of liquid to the heater is stopped at the end of beverage preparation or when dispensing of the beverage is terminated. The control unit (2)
An event in which the mixing device and / or the brewing device is in a take-off configuration;
An event in which raw materials are removed from the mixing device and / or the brewing device; and
The heater (1) is powered to maintain and reach the reduced temperature upon the occurrence of at least one event selected from events in which the absence of raw materials is detected in the mixing device and / or the brewing device. 10. A beverage preparation machine according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein It said mixing device and / or the淹出device is configured to capture capsule containing the raw material, the beverage preparation machine as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 10.   The control unit (2) is further adapted to automatically interrupt the power supply of the heater (1) to reach a steady non-operating temperature when an interruption condition and / or a standby condition are met. Item 12. The beverage preparation machine according to any one of Items 1 to 11. A method for converting an existing beverage preparation machine to the beverage preparation machine according to any one of claims 1 to 12, wherein the existing beverage preparation machine is
And heating data for heating a feed liquid to a beverage preparation temperature from the feed temperature,
A control unit for controlling the supply of liquid and the heater so that the heater is powered to reach and maintain an operating temperature to heat the supply liquid to a beverage preparation temperature during beverage preparation;
And a淹出equipment for mixing device and / or淹出for mixing one or more beverage raw materials, in the method,
The control unit is powered to keep the heater at a reduced temperature and maintained outside the range of beverage preparation during use; and
The control unit is
An event in which the mixing device and / or the brewing device are in a take-up configuration;
An event in which raw materials are incorporated into the mixing device and / or the brewing device; and
User request for beverage preparation to cause the heater to reach and maintain the operating temperature upon occurrence of at least one event selected from events in which raw materials are detected in the mixing device and / or the brewing device The method is characterized in that it is modified so that the heater is powered prior to.

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